Monday, April 11, 2016

I was surfing several differen sites this last week and came across this cool coasters. Who doesn't need coasters for drinks around the house? This DIY comes from www.theidearoom.net, great idea for a fathers day gift!

Today I have a new little project for those of you who drink your beverages out of a can or know someone who does. These will also be a great gift idea for Father’s Day…Soda Can Coasters.

Yes…that is my favorite drink of choice…that I no longer drink…Boo! Getting to old to be drinking my calories! But I can still enjoy looking at it when I place my ice water on my lovely new coasters!

Simply empty out some cans of your choice and rinse them out with water. Then take some tin snips and very carefully cut off the top and bottom of the can. This can be a bit tricky. **But be very careful as these cans are super sharp!!!! I suggest wearing garden gloves while cutting to help give you extra protection. I reenacted these photos because the gloves were not so pretty in the pictures…cause we all know how important that it! Be sure to save as much of the flat part of the side of the can so that you can get a nice size square for your coasters. Then cut down the seam of the can. Most cans will have a definite seam on the side…usually by the ingredient list.

Then I took some Silicone and put a good amount on the back of the square. I then attached them to some simple white tiles that measured 4 by 4 inches. I found them at Home Depot in the tile aisle and I believe they were 16 cents a piece. Flatten and rub the tin square so that it is securely attached. Wipe any excess Silicone off the top of the tile with a damp warm cloth.

Then I set a paper towel on the top of it and laid a pile of books on it and let them dry over night! The next day I took a small paint brush and painted some glossy varnish over the top of it to seal it all off so that the edges would not peel up and to protect the edges from poking or scratching any users of the coasters.

Then simply place some felt pads on the bottom of the coasters to protect your table top from getting scratched!

Aren’t they fun? I think they would be great to have in your TV room or game room.

And did I mention how inexpensive they are to make? Pennies per coaster! Really! And you are recycling with a purpose!

So go ahead and whip some of these bad boys up! One of the perks of this recent project was that I HAD to have one last drink. Really! There were no empty cans to be found! And I enjoyed every last drop. Who knows, I just may HAVE to make a LOT more of these coasters to give to ALL my friends and family!

Children's Day Festival (English: International April 23rd, Children's Day Festival; Turkish" Uluslarasi 23Nisan Cocuk Senligi) is a festival which is celebrated on April 23rd each year in Turkey. This festival is gathering the children from a ll over the world under the motto of "Love, Friendship and Peace". The festival is organized by Turkish Radio and Television Corporation.

History

The April 23rd Children's Festival , a children's festival which was gifted to Turkish children by MustafaKemal Ataturk, founder of the Republic of Turkey, to mark the opening of the Assembly. The festival has been celebrated internationally since 1979. The Children's Festival was first celebrated in Turkey on April 23rd, 1920, when the Turkish Grand National Assembly was opened. The festival intend to contribute creation of a world where children can live peacefully by developing sentiments of fraternity, love and friendship.

The greatest aspiration of Ataturk, who saved his country from occupations and introduced reforms in all fields hence changing the viewpoint of the nations it was modernization, in other words, an industrialized country that the industry of the Republic which it was founded on was out of date and poorly equipped, Ataturk endeavored to achieve modernization through educational reform, and thus entrusted Turkey to the children and the youth. Ataturk knew that modernization could not be achieved in a rapid way; therefore, he presumed that the Turkish children educated at schools resting upon positive sciences could attain his goals. He believed his nation and lived for what he believed. This is the main philosophy of the April 23rd festival. As can be seen, the educated children and youth have made great contributions to the creation of modern Turkey. Present day Turkey has evolved over the years and has attained a level of a modern state.

As UNESCO proclaimed 1979 as the International Year of the Child, director of children's programs of TRT Ankara Television Tekin Ozertem and his assistant Canan Arisoy, developed a project aimed at embracing all the children in the world. Upon approval of the project by top executives of the TRT Corporation, preparation for the organization commenced. Thus, the first celebration of TRT International April 23rd Children's Festival took place on April 23rd, 1979 in Turkey, with participation of five countries, namely Russia, Iraq, Italy, Romania and Bulgaria. Today, TRT International April 23rd Children's Festival is celebrated every year with participation of approximately fifty countries. From 1979 to 2000, celebrations were performed in the capital city of Ankara. In the following years, celebration took place in Turkey's various major cities such as Izmir, Istanbul and Antalya. Nane Annan, wife of the former U.N. Secretary, General Kofi Annan, became the honorary guest of celebration on April 23rd, 2000. In her speech at the gala, Mrs. Annan expressed her pleasure at participating in the celebration and passed greeting form her spouse Kofi Annan. Mrs. Annan also called on the entire world to say "Yes" to the aspiration of children.

After her speech, "the common declaration of the children from forty countries", which was approved by the children at the International Children's Congress on April 18th, and was read in English and Turkish. The declaration was presented to Mrs. Annan to hand it over to Kofi Annan. Children aged between eight and fourteen attend the festival. The program covers from April 16th to the 26th. The invited groups are made up of nearly twenty children and six executive leaders. By April 15th, guests arrive in the city where the celebrations will take place. TRT appoints a guide for each groups and the guide enable coordination with group leaders. Through primary schools in the festival city, each group is entertained by families of their

Turkish peers in a warm and affectionate gathering. In this way, children of the world recount positive traits of the Turkish nation to their own families and friends when they return to their home countries. This makes the Turkish people gratified. Festival Week begins with a Parade. During the parade, guests wear their traditional outfits, perform their traditional music and dance on the largest street in the city. In the days following, guest countries perform shows in large parts and embrace in the culture of the Turkish people. Festival week continues with the children's visit to the mausoleum of Ataturk, the leader who gifted this festival to the Turkish children. Then, the children are welcomed by the President of the Turkish Republic, the President of the Turkish Naitonal Grand Assembly, and the Director General of TRT.

On the day before the festival, all the children gather to rehearse. When the big day comes, the gala of the festival takes place. In the gals, which lasts nearly four hours and it broadcast live, all the groups wear their national constume's and present three minute performances, accompanied with their traditional music.
The gala continues with the children convey the greeting that they have brought from their home countries, and ends with a hand in hand dance of all the flowers of th world, in the name of peace and friendship. Through picnics and excursions on the 24th and 25th. On the last day of the festival, the children sense that it's coming to an end, some burst into tears, knowing that they have to leave behind new friendships they have made with their Turkish bothers and sisters.

Omizutori, or the annual, sacred Water Drawing Festival, is a Japanese Buddhist festival that takes place in the NIgatsu-do of Todai-ji, Nara, Japan. The festival is the final rite in observance of the two week long Shuni-e ceremony. This ceremony is to cleanse the people of their sins as well as to usher in spring of the New Year. Once the Omizutori is completed, the cherry blossoms have started blooming and spring has arrived.

The rite occurs on the last night of the Shuni-e ceremony, when monks bearing torches come to the Wakasa Well, underneath the Nigatsu-do Hall, which according to legend only springs forth water once a year. The ceremony has occurred in the Nigatsu-do of the imperial temple at Nara, of the Todai-ji, since it was first founded. These annual festivals have been dated back to the year of 752. The earliest known records of the use of an incense seal during the religious rites in Japan were actually used during one Omizutori.

Eleven priests, whom are called Renhyoshu, are appointed n December of the previous year to participate in the Omizutori festivals. Much preparation goes into this yearly festival, and the priests are tasked with cleaning the sites for the rituals, making circuit pilgrimages to surrounding shrines and temples, and the preparing of various goods that are to be used in the rituals. During the time leading up to Omizutori, the priests are forbidden to speak at all or leave their lodgings. Each priest is very firm in the practice of his duty in specific, strict orders, and preparing himself for the ceremonies to come.

Waiting at the Shrine

Torches are lit at the start of the Omizutori, during the ittokuka, which is held in the early morning on the first of March. There is an evening ceremony, called Otaimatsu, where young ascentics brandish large torches that are burning. While waving the torches in the air, they draw large circles with the fire it emits. It is believed that is a person viewing the ceremony is showered with the sparks form the fire, that the person will then be protected from evil things.

Omizutori is the largest ceremony on the night of the twelfth of March. The next day the rite of drawing of the water is held with an accompaniment of ancient Japanese music. the monks draw water, which only springs up from the well in front of the temple building on this specific day, and offer it first to the Buddhist deities, Bodhisatta Kannon, and then offer it to the public. It is believed that the water, being blessed, can cure ailments. The Omizutori ceremony is the accepting of water from a well. This well is said to be connected by an underground tunnel to Obama on the Sea of Japan coast. The water is given a ceremony called "the sending of the water". The water is actually drawn into two pots, one pot containing water from the previous year, and another that contains the water from all previous ceremonies. From the pot of water that holds the water of the current year, a very small amount of the water is poured into the pot which holds the mixture of water from all oft he previous ceremonies. The resulting water mixture is preserved each year, and this process has taken place for over 1,200 years.

The Legend of Omizutori

Thee are different legends of the origin of Omizutori. One of these legends suggest that the founder of Shuni-e, Jitchu, invited 13,700 of the gods to the ceremony. One of the gods, Onyu-myojin was late to the ceremony because he was fishing on the Onyu River. To make up for the fact that he was late, he then offered scented water from the Onyu River, and the water suddenly sprung up from the spot where the god once stood.

The story of how Shuni-e came to be continues to portray the original founder of Shui-e, Jitchu, as the central character. It is told that the priest, Jitchu, made a journey deep into the moutains of Kasagi in 751 where he witnessed celestial beings performing a ceremony that was meant to cleanse and ask for repentance. Jitchu was so overwhelmed by the ceremony that he decided to bring the rite to the human world. he was warned that this would be a daunting task, but his desire was so strong that he believed he could overcome the task of transferring the rite between the heavens and the world of man. He decided that if he could perform the religious ceremony 1,000 times a day at running speed, he could bring the god's ceremony into his world.

ALWAYS SOMETHING GREAT!!

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A LITTLE BIO FOR YOU

I am passionate about Halloween and Christmas. Many nights spent in the lab making and creating new props and decorations. I have been married for 25 years and have teenage twins (a boy and girl). I like 80's rock, all kinds of sports,thriller and action movies. I also moonlight as a pastry chef/baker.